National Treasury Releases Discussion Paper on Centralising Unclaimed Financial Assets

Posted 20 August 2026 Written by Acts Online
Category Financial Sector Regulation

Brought to you by SAnews: National Treasury has published a discussion paper titled “A Framework to Centralise Unclaimed Financial Assets in South Africa”, outlining a regulatory model to centralise the administration, tracing, and investment of dormant financial assets.

The policy paper builds on findings from the Financial Sector Conduct Authority (FSCA) in its 2022 and 2024 reports, which estimated the value of unclaimed financial assets in South Africa at R88 billion. The proposed framework intends to replace fragmented institutional processes with a single national registry and statutory administrator.

Key Regulatory Proposals

  • Asset Scope: The centralisation mechanism covers dormant bank accounts, unclaimed retirement fund benefits, unpaid dividends, and unclaimed investment and insurance proceeds.
  • Mandatory Transfer to Central Administrator: Financial institutions holding qualifying unclaimed assets will be required to transfer those funds to a designated central administrator responsible for record-keeping and tracing beneficiaries.
  • Investment with the CPD: Transferred assets will be deposited with and invested by the Corporation for Public Deposits (CPD), a subsidiary of the South African Reserve Bank, to preserve capital and reduce administrative fee erosion.
  • Phased Implementation: Reforms will be introduced in stages, starting with unclaimed retirement fund benefits before extending to banking, collective investments, and long-term insurance sectors.

Stakeholders and interested parties are invited to submit written comments on the discussion paper and its specific consultation questions. Submissions must be limited to a maximum of 10 pages and sent to Ms Alvinah Thela at [email protected] by no later than 19 September 2026.

What this means for you, your business, or your clients

  • For yourself: Cross-reference personal records against dormant accounts, legacy retirement annuities, or uncollected share dividends to resolve outstanding claims before assets are transferred under the future centralized registry.
  • For your business: Financial services providers, pension fund administrators, and insurers must review their internal dormant asset schedules and prepare operational data systems for mandatory bulk reporting and transfer to the CPD.
  • For your clients: Advise institutional and corporate clients on impending statutory tracing mandates and assist beneficiary clients in lodging existing unclaimed benefit claims with funds prior to centralized transfer.

Originally published at https://www.sanews.gov.za/south-africa/have-your-say-unclaimed-financial-assets-paper

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